Emanuel Swedenborg

Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772) was a Swedish scientist, philosopher, and Christian theologian whose career bridged Enlightenment inquiry and religious vision. Educated at Uppsala University, he worked as an assessor of Sweden’s Board of Mines and published widely on mathematics, metallurgy, anatomy, and natural philosophy. In midlife he reported profound spiritual experiences that redirected his writing toward biblical interpretation and accounts of the afterlife. His major theological works include *Arcana Coelestia* (1749–1756) and *Heaven and Hell* (1758), which describe heaven, hell, and the spiritual meaning of Scripture. Swedenborg’s ideas later influenced Swedenborgian churches and various writers and thinkers.